


will you go penguin sledding with me?

by r1ptides



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Avatar & Benders Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-05
Updated: 2020-05-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:40:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24014584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/r1ptides/pseuds/r1ptides
Summary: annabeth's never left the fire nation. leo has a flying bison. jason can only bend lightning. thalia worries her boyfriend has evil within him. luke wants the avatar to die.avatar!pjo au
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Luke Castellan/Thalia Grace
Comments: 42
Kudos: 117





	1. the end of an era

**Author's Note:**

> ok I hate writing au's then having to clarify everything bc I feel like I did a bad job making a believable au so if u don't understand I failed but ask questions for clarification lol  
> also this was just supposed to be writing practice bc I never write in the present tense but then it evolved and I can't go back and fix everything so uh please bear with me  
> timeline is basically ignore atla canon  
> if u have ideas for where the story should go pls lmk!!! I have a loose idea so far

Annabeth twists her blonde curls around her fingers absentmindedly, lounging on a bench of the Grace family’s courtyard. “What’s taking her so long?” Annabeth huffs, laying flat on her back to look up at the cherry blossom, taking in it’s sweet scent. She has a few on her own family’s estate, but none are as magnificent as this one, the one she and Thalia would climb for hours as children.

Jason takes a while to respond, preoccupied as he and his best friend Leo spar. “Probably stealing my mother’s makeup to impress Luke.” He dodges one of Leo’s swift kicks and tries for a punch of his own, but Leo is quick and Jason’s glasses fly off in the process.

Annabeth laughs. “Probably,” she agrees.

They’re a happy friend group, strong as could be. Firstly, there are the Graces.

The Graces are one of the wealthiest families in the Fire Nation, their father being a right hand man to the Fire Lord himself. 

Thalia, Jason’s older sister, is Annabeth’s best friend in the whole world. Their families are both of high ranks, so naturally they were paired off to play together when younger, as to not disturb their fathers while at important meetings.

Thalia is the night to Jason’s day. His blonde hair is gold as the sun, as Annabeth’s is. Thalia’s hair is dark as the obsidian floors of their house. Upon a closer look though, they share the same sharp features. They’re both regal, as Fire Nation nobles should be.

The Graces are not just any firebenders, they have a gift (or a curse). They can only bend lightning.

Lightning is deadly in a fight. It courses through the victim's veins, who is too helpless and in shock to do anything, and stops their heart. It’s deadly as the Grace siblings' intense blue eyes, as their father’s stern, unsmiling face.

Annabeth’s seen them use lightning a few times. It ripples between their fingertips, unstable, looking for a conductor.

She hates it.

That’s why Leo and Jason spar without fire. Leo could easily use his own normal firebending to win, but that wouldn’t be all too fair or fun. 

Leo and Jason met when they were younger on their own. Leo isn’t a noble, but Jason is attached to him at the hip nonetheless, despite his parents’ dismay. 

He wears a mischievous smile, and fire seems to dance in his eyes even when he’s not using it. Annabeth’s always liked Leo, he’s good for Jason. The Grace household is prim, proper, and humorless. Leo is all the opposite, he can always give a laugh. 

He’s smart too, despite not receiving the private education the others do. Annabeth wouldn’t say it aloud, but she bets he may even be smarter than her sometimes.

And then there’s Luke. He’s older than Annabeth by three years. He’s always been the group leader. His father is important, and close to General Grace. 

Luke is like Leo in a few ways. He too has the troublemaker smile. He’s smart in his own way, no doubt he’ll be a respected general one day. At 19, he is a man, the son of a noble who will rise in ranks quickly.

All of the girls in the area have swooned over him for years. Even the Fire Lord’s daughter. And maybe even Annabeth, but she was always a little sister to him. She knows it. 

He’d only ever had eyes for Thalia Grace. Recently, they started dating. Hence all the jokes. 

Annabeth was happy for her friends. They had always had a thing for each other, and now they were finally official. 

And then there was Annabeth. Plain old Annabeth, stuck in the middle in age. Recently, she’d been hanging out more and more with Leo and Jason rather than Thalia and Luke. They were busy feeding turtle ducks together and stealing kisses for their parents to not see.

Annabeth was no bender like the rest of them. This meant she needed to make up for it if she was ever to be in a fight. Her mother had taught her the art of chi blocking before she died, hitting opponents in a specific place to render them useless. 

Despite being an expert, Annabeth had never been in a fight. She was sheltered her whole life, so far.

Finally, Thalia enters the courtyard. As Jason predicted, she had taken their mother’s makeup. Her blue eyes are emphasized by the black kohl around them. She wears a tight red top to stand the summer heat. Her pants look like they were silk. Her neck is adorned with a garnet encrusted chain, probably one of her mother’s. Beryl would probably give her a severe punishment for taking it, but Thalia never feared her mother. While Jason aims to please, Thalia does the opposite.

Luke’s arm is looped through her’s. Even as they walk, his dark blue eyes are trained on her face, making him grin and blush as they meet eyes.

“I’m gonna yack if your sister and Luke don’t stop being so gross,” Annabeth hears Leo murmur to Jason, to which Jason punches his arm.

Thalia and Luke give them all a wave. “We’ll see you guys for dinner in town tonight?” Thalia asks, as they continue to walk down a path that leads out. Friday night tradition, they all eat out.

Jason and Leo both nod or give a thumbs up, but Annabeth frowns, sitting up abruptly. “Where are you guys going?” she questions, disgruntled she’d been waiting for almost an hour, unknowing Luke was inside with Thalia.

Luke looks uncomfortable, but Thalia answers. “We’re spying on our fathers’ meeting today. They’re going to propose something important to the Firelord,” she whispers to Annabeth, although Jason and Leo can hear.

“Is it a proposition for a longer summer break? That’d be nice,” Leo says.

Annabeth crosses her arms. “Why wasn’t I invited?” Annabeth’s father might be there as well, and her friends hadn’t even bothered to let her know.

Luke stifles a laugh and pats her shoulder. “Annie, leave this to the adults. You’re too young.”

Annabeth feels her face heat up, and has to restrain herself from landing a swift hit to Luke’s legs so he crumples, which would knock that pompous smirk off his face. “I’m 16! Thals is only 18! I’m a strategist, I should know what’s going on!”

“Annabeth, you know we’ll tell you what we hear, right? Maybe next time. And we can’t risk being seen, this sounds important,” Thalia tries to comfort her. Annabeth wants to scream, nothing feels worse than being babied. And by her best friends? They thought they were so mature, so wise. Annabeth knows she was sharper than them. Hell, she should be in that meeting herself!

Luke nudges Thalia, arching an eyebrow. “We gotta go now,” he says.

“Fine! See if I care, I’ll just hang with Jason and Leo,” Annabeth stomps off. She grabs Leo by his ear. “We’re sparring! And you can bend, throw all you’ve got at me.”

To her dismay, Luke and Thalia don’t try to comfort her. They don’t call to her, changing their minds. They don’t come to their senses, realizing _Annabeth is smartest! She should come!_

She wins the fight with Leo. “Damn woman, can’t you reverse chi block me? I’d like to feel my legs again,” Leo grumbles from the ground. Jason hefts him over his shoulder to bring him inside.

Luke and Thalia come to the restaurant late. Annabeth sits wedged between Jason and Leo specifically so that she didn’t need to sit next to either. 

Jason is jumping out of his seat to know what they’d heard. He would never dare to spy on his father, out of both principle and timidity. But because his sister had done it, he could live vicariously through her.

The thought they’d been caught had flashed through Annabeth’s mind. She ignores it, despite the fact her friends would be in deep shit. What Luke’s father would do for his disobedience, she didn’t know, but Thalia’s father is an unyielding man. Perhaps he’d challenge her to agni kai, or something worse. 

Annabeth studies their faces. Thalia wears her mother’s stoic look when she addresses her children. Blank of emotion. It’s unnatural upon Thalia’s face, something is wrong.

Luke might notice if he wasn’t grinning, baring his shiny white teeth. His hand is intertwined with Thalia’s, but he does not spare her a glance. 

“Can you guys keep a secret?” he asks, sitting down.

“Yes!” Jason says all too quickly. 

Thalia looks worried, but Luke is still too gleeful to notice. “The Fire Lord’s gonna do something big, that we haven’t figured out. Our fathers were vague about the plan, but we will be an even more powerful nation than we are now. There’s just one flaw our fathers have solved. The Avatar. Our fathers have found him or her in the Water Tribe.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Leo interrupts. “They searched the Water Tribe all those years ago. They said they killed the baby, so wouldn’t it be in the Earth Kingdom now?”

Luke grins. He loves knowing things others don’t. He feels smart, old amongst them. Annabeth hates it. The angrier she gets, the more she sees his flaws. His blue eyes are flimsy and cruel as he speaks. The deep blue so many girls want to stare into for hours becomes an ugly color. She knows where this is going, killing the Avatar. The smirk on his face relishes the thought of a death. By her calculations, the Avatar should be only 15, maybe 16. 

The death of a child such as herself.

Luke is a patriot to his last breath.

Jason and Leo don’t pick up on this yet. They’re 14, Luke is their 5 years older hero. They hang on his every word.

“We would know about an Earth Kingdom Avatar.” We, a word that implies he is part of something. “Fire Nation soldiers are everywhere in that primitive place, and the Earth people love gossip. Anyways, it was a lie. The general who said he killed the Avatar infant lied, they say he fell in love with a Water Tribe woman who begged him to leave her people alone. Our fathers found that man, made him fess up, and took it upon themselves to serve justice. The real reason we never found him was because no one checked the Southern Water Tribe. They got a tip there are still waterbenders there, living in those little igloos. When our fathers capture him and bring him to the Fire Lord’s feet, we’ll be swimming in wealth.”

They all blink at each other, but Luke is too jovial to notice his spiel didn’t have the desired reaction. “Dinner’s on me, I’ll get you all the regular,” Luke basically skips off, smiling to no one but himself.

“Our fathers killed a man?” Jason squeaks.

Thalia shakes her head. “They found out, but Luke’s uncle decided what justice meant. Look, you guys need to understand… this isn’t right. Killing the Avatar isn’t right.” She puts her face in her hands, rubbing her eyes and smudging the kohl.

“Well duh, we’re not psychopaths like Luke is,” Leo says. “For once I’m glad I don’t have a dad to be preparing to plan to kill a kid, no offense guys.”

Annabeth isn’t surprised her father is in on this. It’s wise, militarily. The Avatar’s purpose is balance, and whatever the Fire Lord planned made him exactly what the Avatar existed to stop.

“We have to warn him or her,” Jason says. “We can’t let them beat us to the Southern Water Tribe.”

Annabeth looks incredulous. “Jason… do you know how far that is? How would we get a ship? And our parents would know if we disappeared on a random trip there. We’re kids, we don’t have a chance.”

Jason looks at Leo, giving him a dramatic stare. “No way, man!” Leo exclaims. “You’re ratting me out!”

“What?” Thalia inquiries. “Jason what are you talking about?”

“Leo has a way to get us there, we can beat any warship-”

Leo swats a hand out to cover Jason’s mouth, his elbow smacks Annabeth right in the nose. “Ow, Leo!”

Jason’s eyes widen. “Luke’s coming back with the food!”

“Act natural,” Thalia hisses.

Luke goes between eating joyfully and wrapping his arm around Thalia and kissing her cheek.

“Gross,” Jason jokes. “I’m taking off my glasses, I’ve seen enough.”

They all laugh, but all besides Luke know it’s forced. Annabeth’s itching to ask Leo how he could possibly get them to the South Pole. Her brain is brewing with ideas as she pretends to giggle at something Luke says. He should know something’s up, because Annabeth _never_ giggles. The word itself disgusts her, it reminds her of the girls in town who do it as Luke passes.

He should know her better, Perhaps he does not. Perhaps he’s too high on delusions of grandeur.

They could say they were going to the house on Ember Island. Both the Graces and Annabeth’s family had houses there, and they could say they were going for a vacation for Leo’s birthday or something. It wasn’t that much of a lie, Leo’s birthday was in a few weeks, July 7th. It was just the location that was a lie. Only a couple thousand miles between where they would say they were going and the actual destination.

And then there was Luke to worry about. He still thought they all agreed with him, _killing the Avatar sounded like a wonderful idea!_

How would they evade him? He has the eyes of a lion hawk, the instincts of a tiger monkey.

They were in luck. Luke scurries home, excited to see what his father would share with him. He doesn’t bother to walk Thalia home, he just gives her a quick kiss and pats the other's heads as if they are little school children.

“Let’s show them Festus,” Jason says as soon as Luke’s out of sight.

“Bro, you cannot keep a secret for your life!” Leo exclaims, shifting uncomfortably.

“What’s a Festus?” Thalia asks.

“Not a what, a who,” Leo corrects, grinning. “Well, if the jig is up I guess I have to show you.”

The walk to Leo’s house is far. Annabeth’s father and step-mother would kill her for being in _that_ part of town.

The door opens to the house, and Annabeth is engulfed in a hug. She reciprocates it, nestling her head into the woman’s shoulder.

Esperanza is the closest thing any have to what a mother should be. She is warm, while Jason and Thalia’s and Annabeth’s step-mother are cold.

Ironic, since Esperanza is no bender.

“Mom, you’re smothering them,” Leo whines. “We have a mission!”

Esperanza moves onto Jason. “Leo, I haven’t seen your friends in weeks!”

“You’re too stingy with your mom, save some mom for the rest of us,” Jason agrees. It’s a joke, but there’s a bitterness to it. Their mother can’t compare to Leo’s.

“I’m showing them Festus,” he interrupts. Esperanza stands up straighter. 

“What brought this about?” she asks, a hand on her hip.

“The mission!” Leo repeats. “I’ll tell you later, I gotta show them before curfew. Oh by the way, we’re going on a field trip!”

Leo ushers them outside, to the big shed in his yard. “Prepare your eyes, ladies,” he says.

“Leo, quit the dramatics, open the doors!” Thalia says, crossing her arms.

“Jeez, so pushy,” Leo grumbles. The big metal door opens and Annabeth can’t believe her eyes.

Inside is a fully grown air bison. It wakes groggily, but at the sight of Leo and Jason bounds over, pushing them down and licking excitedly. 

It’s brown eyes shine curiously at Annabeth and Thalia. 

“These are friends, Festus,” Leo nods, to which Festus knocks Thalia over and licks her entire face.

“I love it!” Thalia exclaims, unaware of her now completely smudged eye makeup, making her look like a raccoon fox.

Annabeth reaches up to pet it’s shaggy white fur.

“Him,” Leo corrects. “Our ride to the South Pole! All we need is a basket, which I can make in a day.”

“Leo… how did you get him? Only the air nomads have them… and they’re not easily tamed,” Annabeth asks.

“Some poachers came through our village with him when he was a baby a couple years ago, apparently they eat them as a delicacy. He was supposed to go to the Fire Lord’s palace, but when the guards were distracted I stole him. Mom wanted me to return him to the nomads, but it was no use, Festus and I are best friends for life. Unlike Jason here, he can keep a secret,” Leo explains.

“Hey! I kept the secret long enough!” Jason protests.

“Mhm, sure. Anyways, Festus can get us there no problem.”

Jason peers out at the night sky. “We’ve gotta get home, we’ll talk more tomorrow. Without Luke.”

They meet early at Thalia and Jason’s house. Annabeth shares her idea about the Ember Island idea, but she doesn’t know how to get rid of Luke.

“Idea,” Thalia begins. “You three go, I’ll tell Luke I want some time alone with him, and surely he won’t want to go anywhere.”

“Ooh, _time alone,”_ Leo echoes.

Jason covers his own ears. “Gross.”

Thalia’s face brightens. “We need to seem on his side as long as we can. After we warn the Avatar, everything will change.”

Annabeth rests her head in her arms. The Avatar. Master of all elements. She wonders what he or she is like. Wise and powerful. How unfair someone could bend all four elements and she could bend none?

“We need to leave tonight,” Leo says. “Who knows when your dads are going to tell the Fire Lord?” 

He’s right. Annabeth looks around. She lives in the wealthiest part of the Fire Nation. Anything material she wants, she receives. What is she if she leaves? A traitor? Would she be found out? 

Annabeth has a feeling she won’t be coming home anytime soon. And if she does, she might not be welcome.

Annabeth’s parents don’t care that she's going to Ember Island. Her step-mother is pleased to see her off and on her way. They don’t ask with who, or how long, or how they’re getting there.

The perks of neglect.

Luke agrees that he and Thalia are far too busy to come on a silly vacation. He gives Thalia a wink that she responds to with an artificial smile. Plus, they might get the opportunity to be involved in their father’s schemes. Luke plans on telling his dad he can help.

He gives them all a bear hug, telling them to not stay in the sun too long, and not to get in any trouble. Plenty of influential families have summer houses there, Luke wouldn’t want them disgracing their families.

Esperanza tries to give them money for their travels, but Annabeth admits she took enough to last them months. She packs food for them, and it smells more delicious than anything the chefs in her house have ever made.

Another hug, but this one is realer than Luke’s. Esperanza asks Annabeth to look after the boys, who “probably couldn’t get themselves out of a paper bag.”

The Fire Nation is all she has ever known. She has not seen the beautiful, articulate Air Temples in anything other than pictures. She has not seen the carefully crafted city of Ba Sing Se. She certainly has never seen the Southern Water Tribe.

“Yip yip,” Leo says, and with that Festus takes off.

  
  



	2. will you go penguin sledding with me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed tenses lmao oops im more comfortable writing past tense aha
> 
> 5000 words in and I finally reference the title
> 
> thank u for all the comments and kudos they're so sweet <3

With a map, Annabeth navigated. The winds at their altitude were cold and harsh as they got farther from the equator. 

Leo sat on Festus’ head to steer with the rope attached to his horns. He was a beautiful creature, Annabeth never thought she would see one in her entire life. His fur was soft from Leo’s care and grooming. Leo spoke to him, and surprisingly the bison made noises in response.

Annabeth peered over to Jason. The sun was setting, making his golden hair even more so. His blue eyes were pensive behind his glasses. At the moment, he looked so much older than fourteen.

“You okay?” Annabeth asked, patting his shoulder.

Jason shrugged. “This is the right thing… I know it is… but what happens when we go home? Will people find out we warned the Avatar? Will this become something more?” 

He looked up at her, searching for guidance. Annabeth felt uneasy. The boys were only fourteen. She wasn’t used to being the oldest in a group.

“Everything will work out,” she found herself saying. It was a bold faced lie.

Jason looked like he wants to say more, when Leo interrupted.

“So this Avatar… if it’s a girl do you think she’ll be hot?”

“Probably cold… because Water Tribe… get it?” Jason laughed meekly to himself.

Leo snorted. “Hopefully we come across a marketplace to get Jason a sense of humor. You’re not pulling any Water Tribe girls with jokes like that.”

Annabeth found herself laughing, while Jason protested indignantly.

They rested on an island they found, in what seemed to be Air Nomad territory. Festus grazed on plants in the area before laying down and snoring. 

They slept on his back in sleeping bags. Leo drifted off first, probably tired from steering all day without a break.

Annabeth saw Jason twist and turn, obviously not asleep yet. “Can’t sleep?” she asked.

He turned to her, squinting from both the dark and his lack of glasses. “Do you think Thalia doesn’t love Luke anymore?”

The question was something she barely stopped to think about. They had just started dating after years of pining, and now Luke was so different: his true colors revealed in one day. Annabeth had known he loves their country, but this is a new level.

And Thalia… how was she feeling right now? They hadn’t even got the time for a proper girl talk session. Dinner had been so stressful, everyone not wanting to give Luke any hints they disagreed with him, but praying he wouldn’t discuss it further so they’d be forced to agree.

And Annabeth couldn’t pretend to know anything about love. Her crushes consisted of a few boys from school when she was much younger and Luke. She’d barely spoken to anyone outside their tight knit group.

“I’m not sure Jason. Everything’s different now,” she said. 

Jason nodded, like a disappointed lion vulture cub. 

The next day, around noon, they could see it. “Lady and gentleman, prepare for landing,” Leo announced.

Annabeth was completely disappointed, to say the least. The first part of the outside world she’d ever seen was a cluster of igloos. Sure, there were a lot, like a little town, but nothing more to it. “This is the South Pole, where the great Avatar lives?” she asked.

Leo shrugged. “Beggars can’t be choosers. So should we just land in the center of town, maybe woo some Water Tribe girls with our cool air bison?”

“No!” Annabeth exclaimed. “Leo, they’ll see our clothes and know we’re Fire Nation!”

Jason snorted. “What are they gonna do? Throw a snowball at us?”

Annabeth crossed her arms. She almost forgot she was on this mission with two blunt fourteen year old boys. “I packed gray warm clothes. Land Festus somewhere no one will see, we’ll change and walk the rest of the way.”

Leo groaned. “Such a far walk.”

“Leo!”

“Fine Annie, we’ll land behind that snow pile.”

Once they landed, they rolled up their red pants as much as needed and put on the long gray fur coats. Their teeth chattered from the cold, despite it being summer.

“How do I look?” Leo asked, pulling up the collars of the coat. “Am I Water Tribe material?”

“Sure,” Annabeth said. “Let’s get going before dark, we’ll take some money and some food.”

The trek to the town was about 20 minutes of Leo asking “are we there yet?” despite the fact he could clearly see how far it was.

Annabeth felt shaky walking there, she’d never been somewhere so new. Also, everything was so white it was mildly blinding.

They finally made it, entering what seemed to be the igloo town equivalent of an alleyway, so not many people were around. 

They inched out, walking in a close group along paths. The people of the Water Tribe all had the same skin tone, which was a stark difference to Jason and Annabeth’s paleness. Their hair was dark, and most had bright blue eyes.

Annabeth felt the harsh stares of the people. Jason, Leo and herself were in their home, obvious foreigners. Her coat idea hadn’t worked as she had hoped.

No one questioned them for a while, until a girl stood in their path.

She was much shorter than Annabeth, but the look on her face made up for it. She seemed to have heterochromia, something Annabeth had read in a book once. One eye was a light blue, like the color of a frosty river. The other was a deep, dark brown, like the bark of an oak tree. Both were probably beautiful on a normal occasion, but now appeared deadly, trained on the intruders of her village.

Her dark hair was in what Annabeth imagined was a Water Tribe fashion, two loops of hair hung loosely out, and were then pinned to the back of her head which was in a high ponytail. Her earrings were beaded in a circle with blue beads.

Her features were chiseled and gorgeous, but at the moment they were in an angry scowl.

“Who are you?” she demanded, voice near a growl. Her hand was in the pocket of her coat, and Annabeth could make out the outline of a knife. A really big, really sharp, curved knife.

“Hey, I’ll handle this,” Leo said cooly, slipping out from behind Annabeth. He bowed to the girl low as he could, giving her a sideways grin as he did so. “I’m Leo, we’re students from Ba Sing Se University, traveling the world. Doing a report on the Southern Water Tribe. Can I get a name for this interview, beautiful?”

The girl wasn’t amused. “First thing you should learn then, we feed lying invaders to our polar bear dogs.”

Leo gulped. “Well, I’ll let you take this one from here Jason.”

Jason paled as Leo pushed him in front. “We have a message for the Avatar,” Jason squeaked out, to which Piper pulled out her knife as fast as lightning and slid it under Jason’s throat. 

“Are you Fire Nation? You’ll never get him-”

“Piper!” A man’s voice called. “What are you doing?”

The man approaching must have been Piper’s father, they looked so similar. He looked like a warrior, but even higher up. The chief.

“They want Percy,” the girl, Piper, said. Her glare was unwavering and the knife was still under Jason’s throat.

Jason looked like he was ready to piss himself. That, or they hadn’t taken a bathroom break from flying for too long.

Annabeth felt a heat to her side. A small flame was forming in Leo’s hand, and he looked ready to use it if need be.

“No, it’s a misunderstanding sir!” Annabeth interrupted before anything escalated. “We’re from the Fire Nation, but we left because they’re planning something terrible. We just want an audience with the Avatar, they know he’s here.”

Piper’s father looked between the three of them and his daughter. He was probably thinking their trio was awfully lousy looking and his short yet fearless daughter could skewer them all in seconds. “Pipes, take them to him. If they try anything…”

Piper nodded. “Let’s go.”

“So… Pipes,” Leo began to say, until Piper gave him a glare.  _ “Piper, _ I mean. How’d you know we weren’t from around here?”

Piper kept walking, keeping her head forward as she answered. “Your friends’ hair, it’s the color of straw. No one here has that.”

Leo feigned anger. “Nice job guys! Giving us away!”

“Why do you need to be disguised? For bad intentions?” Piper asked coyly. 

“No!” Annabeth deflected quickly. “We just didn’t want to seem like a threat.”

“I like you,” Piper decided, slipping her knife back into her coat. “You’re honest.” She gave Annabeth a smile that was totally different than the expressions she wore moments prior. She looked like an easy going fourteen year old, off to do whatever they do around here for fun.

“So this Percy… he’s the Avatar?” Jason asked.

Piper nodded. “And one of my best friends.”

Annabeth braced herself to see whoever this guy was. Master of the elements, bringer of balance to the world. She was eager to meet such a powerful person, although his spirit held 10,000 years of wisdom.

So much to learn.

“Where are we going?” Leo asked, heating himself with flames from his fingertips.

“Where we usually hangout,” Piper replied.

Finally, they reached it. Huge slopes covered with snow and a colony of creatures; otter penguins. Annabeth had only seen them in books. They were the height of small children, with four flippers and an otter-ish face. Both bird and mammal. They were clumsy on their feet when on land, but in the water they were excellent swimmers. 

Standing in the center of their crowd was a boy, probably her age. His skin tone was that of all the other Water Tribe people, and his eyes were a sea green. His hair was in the style of most of the other men, shaved at the sides and a small ponytail in the back.

He patted all of the otter penguins on the head, feeding a fish to each. Even as he ran out of fish, they still nuzzled up to him lovingly. “Pipes, who are they?” he asked, smiling excitedly. He studied the newcomers, mostly Jason and Annabeth probably because of their hair. He met Annabeth’s eyes first, and gave her a sideways grin.

“Will you go penguin sledding with me?”

  
  



	3. the last water bender

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok I PROMISE next chapter is Luke

“Penguin sledding?” Leo exclaimed. “Count me in!”

Annabeth’s eyes widened. _“You’re_ the Avatar?” she asked.

She wasn’t sure what she expected. Certainly not the cute Water Tribe boy before her. _Yes,_ he was cute. His hair was the darkest black imaginable, shaved around the sides and the top in a little ponytail, like all the warrior men seemed to have. His sea green eyes were _gorgeous,_ she could drown in them. His features were sharp and angular.

But the smirk on his face was goofy, his voice casual. And he spent his time with these creatures?

Her question wiped that smirk right off his face, it must’ve sounded unconvinced or mocking, and she’d meant to keep it in her head. How could this be the all wise Avatar? She expected some sort of warrior, tending to his village. Or maybe a spiritual being, meditating all day.  
“Yeah, what about it?” he said, getting all up in her face. The cold, antarctic winds seemed to whip even more as his sea green eyes became darkened, and he didn’t look like a goofy kid anymore. 

It was a little late to take it back, and now Percy was downright scary, but Annabeth wanted to stand her ground. There was no Luke or Thalia for miles to hide in back of.

“Shouldn’t you be practicing the elements? Or communicating with spirits? You can’t bring balance to the world down _here_ playing with animals,” Annabeth said, getting all up in his face too. In the back of her mind she wondered if Piper would pull that big knife on her.

Inches were between them, and Annabeth made the mistake of looking around his face, inspecting every feature. Percy must’ve taken this as her judging him even further (which she wondered why that would offend him, didn’t he know he was gorgeous?)

“So you come to my village, and tell me how to be the Avatar?” he demanded, voice rougher than before. “Look, I’ve mastered elements. I talk to the spirits. Don’t tell me how to do my job. Who are you guys, anyways?”

 _Don’t shy away from this,_ she told herself. Thalia wouldn’t. 

“My name’s Annabeth. This is Jason and Leo, we have something you should know from the Fire Nation-”

 _Mistake._ The words _Fire Nation_ set something off in Percy, because suddenly Annabeth’s feet were planted where they stood in the Earth. All it took was a gesture from Percy for her to be rendered useless.

He didn’t spare Leo or Jason, knocking them down with a gust of air. 

Annabeth wanted to cry, if she were being honest with herself. She’d never been in something even close to a real fight, only practice matches. She was in the middle of the South Pole, miles from home, and was probably about to be killed by the Avatar for poor word choice.

Some babysitter she was. Thalia and Esperanza would curse her in the afterlife.

“Percy!” Piper interrupted. “They don’t mean any harm!”

Percy frowned. “Are you sure?”

“They say they have something you’ll want to hear.”

“Then tell me,” Percy said, glaring at Annabeth. She recovered her wits, forcing herself to glare back. She was in charge. She would get them out of this mess. And maybe get her freezing feet out of the ground. 

“The Fire Nation knows you’re alive. They want to kill you,” she said, voice unwavering. It was odd, to be so proud of your tone while telling someone they were wanted dead.

Percy paled. He swiped his hands and the Earth released her feet. Another gesture he made was raising one hand quickly which raised Leo and Jason to their feet. Earthbending and airbending: both done so easily and neither his home element. “What do you mean they know I’m alive. What else would I be? And why do they want me dead now? How do they even know I’m here, as far as they know the Southern Water Tribe has no more benders.”

Piper looked at her friend sadly. “C’mon, let’s all sit down and talk inside.”

“No penguin sledding?” Jason asked dejectedly.

Piper gave him a weak grin, but a grin nonetheless. “Maybe another time, Jason.”

They sat in an igloo, which was surprisingly warm. The whole walk back Percy’s smug demeanor was gone. He looked around at every corner, as if he’d be attacked.

Jason and Leo had looked around in amazement at the new world before them. Annabeth didn’t consider the Southern Water Tribe much. It was regarded as the lesser sister to the Northern Water Tribe. Annabeth saw why, it was primitive here.

The people were friendly enough. All had greeted Percy, to which he gave a somber greeting back. All noticed something was wrong with their tribe’s pride and joy, so it seemed.

They sat cross legged in the igloo. There were many furs around, and other decorations. Somehow it was cozy, despite being made of snow.

“Explain,” Piper said.

Annabeth complied. “Our friends, Jason’s older sister, spied on some men and some of our fathers’ meeting. They planned to tell the Fire Lord something important. They found out there’s no Earth Kingdom Avatar, like they thought. They thought they had killed the Avatar in the North Pole long ago. Somehow, they found out that was a lie by a Fire Nation soldier protecting the tribe, and that the Avatar, you, are really here.”

“Oh, and the Fire Lord’s planning some big evil ominous thing that will probably destroy the world. Probably why he wants to kill you,” Leo supplied, popping a piece of fried fish in his mouth. “Damn, who makes these? I’m gonna need the recipe-”

“Shut up Leo,” Jason said, elbowing him.

“Ow! You know I have a sensitive rib cage Jason!”

Percy ignored the banter, putting his face in his hands. “What am I supposed to do?” he asked, looking at Annabeth as if she genuinely had the answer. Annabeth wanted to laugh, but that would probably come across as borderline psychotic and inappropriate. She didn’t have a clue what he should do.

“Not be killed?” Leo suggested.

Percy gave him a dirty look. “Thanks,” he deadpanned. “All these years I thought the world just didn’t care, and mom won’t let me leave this place until I’m like twenty! She says she doesn’t want the Fire Nation to get me… like they got Piper’s mom and my dad all those years ago. Not that you guys would know how evil the Fire Nation is.”

Annabeth frowned. He was right, after all. In school, they learned the Fire Nation was the greatest in the world. Any conflict was brushed off as them sharing their superior culture.

“Why did they take your parents?” Annabeth asked softly. It was probably rude, she’d only known the guy for minutes. 

“So the Avatar would never be born here,” Piper supplied, taking Percy’s hand. Annabeth’s eyes flitted between the two. Were they…? No, it didn’t seem like that. “Years ago they found all our waterbenders and took them. Between the North and the South being on opposite sides of the world, they figured we were easier to take out so they could keep an eye on only one for future Avatars. Percy and I were so young, and they never found him. If what you say is true, they figured the Avatar wasn’t here in the first place.”

“Are you a waterbender?” Jason asked Piper.

She shook her head. “No, Percy’s the last waterbender in the Southern Water Tribe.”

Later, Annabeth had trouble falling asleep. Piper had been nice enough to let her and the boys sleep in an empty igloo, and let Festus sleep right outside.

Annabeth quietly snuck out, as to not wake Jason and Leo. 

She took a deep breath of fresh air. It was cold and unfamiliar, the Fire Nation was rarely cold. She wondered if her parents were thinking of her. Was she having fun on Ember Island? Was she getting in any trouble?

The moon was full. Back home, no one ever talked about how beautiful it was. The sun was their symbol, their power.

“Going somewhere?” a voice interrupted her thoughts.

Percy was standing there, how he’d been so silent she didn’t know.

“Where’d you come from?” she asked.

“Seems we’re neighbors,” he replied, gesturing to the igloo next to theirs. “Why are you out?”

“Couldn’t sleep.”

“Me neither.”

Annabeth sat and patted next to her for him to sit. He complied.

“I’m sorry for the way I acted earlier,” she admitted. “I’m not used to being the leader- well I’ve always wanted to be, but I’m not that prepared.”

Percy nodded. “It’s alright. I just got offended… I know I’m not the ideal Avatar.”

“That’s not what I meant-”

“Lying’s not a good look on you, Annabeth of the Fire Nation,” he decided, locking eyes. “You expected me to be a real Avatar. Saving the world already. You don’t think the Southern Water Tribe’s worthy of having an Avatar, huh? That we’re some shantytown compared to the North. The truth is we don’t have any guide on Avatar duties. I don’t even know what goes on outside of here, or who I need to save. No Avatar has been of the Southern Water Tribe in centuries. This is all a slap in the face, a wake up call. I guess this is my first task, fighting the Fire Nation?”

Annabeth had a lot to process. The guy was smarter than she’d given him credit for. He was right, the South Pole meant nothing to her, she was completely unimpressed. Call her snobby, but she couldn’t help how her mind worked. She wasn’t impressed with him either initially, she’d been looking for an Avatar who would share his wisdom with her, so Annabeth alone could have more knowledge than anyone back home. She found a goofy kid who hung out with penguins. How could he be the one, the bridge between worlds?

“You could evade them, they’ll come for you because they know you’re here.”

His eyes blazed with anger. “And leave my _people?_ My family? You think I’d do that?”

Annabeth held her ground. “Who does it help if you stay to die? No offense to your _people,_ but they’re not capable of holding off the Fire Nation. They’ll kill you, and you’ll be reborn into the Earth Kingdom. The Fire Nation’s killing you now for a reason, they’re planning something the Avatar needs to stop. If you die, you’ll be an _infant,_ incapable of doing anything about it.”

It was a heavy conversation, talking about his death so casually. Annabeth didn’t know what it felt like to be the Avatar, was Percy unafraid of death because his spirit was eternal? Or was she just assuming?

“Aren’t you ready to save the world anyways,” she added. “You said you mastered the elements.”

Percy looked uncomfortable. “I may have… uh…”

“Lied?” she suggested.

“I prefer exaggerated,” he said sheepishly.

“I figured. If you’ve never left, how would you master the elements? But you do know airbending and earthbending, and firebending I guess? And I assume you’ve mastered waterbending. How did you learn?”

“The spirit world, I project my spirit there and observe, then come back here to practice. I only know basic earthbending and airbending.”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. Impressive, actually. She didn’t expect him to have any spiritual connections, nevertheless going into the spirit world so regularly. “And firebending?”

Percy’s face darkened. “I don’t need to firebend,” he said with certainty. 

“You’re joking, right? You need to, you’re the Avatar.”

Percy shook his head. “I won’t bend an evil element. Fire destroys everything it touches. You use it, don’t you?”

“I’m not a bender.”

Percy looked surprised. “Oh, wow. What about your friends?”

“Leo, yes. Jason’s a special case. He can only bend lightning. But Leo can teach you, he only uses fire to create, not destroy. He welds things.”

“Hm, I’ll consider it,” Percy said, although it sounded like something to just make her stop talking about firebending. “It’ll be morning soon, you should get some rest.”

Annabeth was taken aback the conversation ended so abruptly. But Percy did look weary. “It was… nice, talking to you,” she said.

He stood and offered his hand to help her up. It was surprisingly warm. “Nice talking to you too,” he grinned. “Goodnight, Annabeth.”

Annabeth felt like she’d only just gotten to sleep when she felt a poke at her arm. “Ow, which one of you are pinching me?” she groaned, ready to hit one of the boys over the head.

Instead, it was a sharp beak. A messenger hawk, like the ones back home. The bird had a little wrapped up scroll in the canister on it’s back.

It was news from Thalia. But nothing good.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ty again for all the love for this!!!  
> (the notes r glitching from the last chapter ignore if its me asking about the pop again at the end here)


	4. treachery

Luke peered in the mirror, but it was a mistake.

His face that was once the most handsome in town, which drew attention from all girls, even the Fire Lord’s daughter, was marred.

The burn was awful, spreading from his right eye down to the back of his ear. His eyebrow had been seared off.

The pain would be unbearable if he could feel it, all he felt was pure rage.

His father was severe, this he knew. But Luke didn’t know how unforgiving he would be for listening in on his meeting. No matter how much Luke had pleaded on how he simply wanted to help, his father screamed, and at last came the burn.

Luke wouldn’t let this go unforgiven.

Bright and early, Luke said hello to his mother. He gave her a kiss on the head as he got dressed.

Maybe the word mother wasn’t appropriate. She was a shell of what his mother had been, driven to the brink of insanity. No one ever gave Luke the full story of what made her snap years before, in fact he’d barely known anything about her life prior to marrying his father in the first place. 

All he knew was she left her faraway town for him.

Her big doe eyes were empty as he hugged her, like looking at those of small animals. Lifeless, dull. She hadn’t even noticed the scar now covering a third of her only son’s face.

His father had already left for the day. He often did that, sometimes Luke wondered if he had another family to take care of. Much to Luke’s dismay, his father enjoyed flirting with the other women in town.

On a normal summer day, perhaps Luke would go hangout with the gang: Jason, Leo, Annabeth and Thalia. Nowadays, it might just be him and Thalia. But he had other plans.

The Fire Lord’s palace was not far, after all Luke was of a noble family.

He hadn’t arranged an audience, but it was a risk he was going to need to take. What would the Fire Lord do, burn the other two thirds of his face?

Luke made his way inside, familiar enough with the guards. 

The Fire Lord was inside, on his throne. Luke kneeled immediately, head tilted downwards as much as possible.

“Luke I presume,” the man said. It wasn’t an angry tone, Luke was relieved. 

“Fire Lord Kronos,” Luke responded respectfully.

“I have not seen you in ages, and although I’m not fond of unexpected visitors it is wonderful to see one of the nation’s brightest young men.”

“Thank you, my lord. My heart belongs to this nation before anything else, that’s why I’m here.” Luke felt the smile twitch at his mouth. The burn didn’t hurt so much anymore. 

The story was simple enough. Luke had planned it all night, unable to sleep. 

He was cunning too, good with words.

He’d say his father was conspiring with the Avatar, who he had found alone. The plan was to work together with this Water Tribe warrior to usurp the Fire Lord and rule the world together, Fire Nation and Water Tribe. Luke’s story almost made him laugh to himself; the Water Tribe ruling the world.

Kronos’ face twisted as Luke told the story miserably. He let himself look pained, saying he tried to fight his father and tell him not to resort to such treason, but his father had burned him.

Kronos' face believed every second, Luke could see his mind race. That, or all he heard was  _ threat. _ Rulers don’t allow such threats to live.

“My own father, my lord,” Luke cried. “Sir…”

Kronos nodded to him. “Say no more Luke, I understand your story. I cannot express my gratitude to you for bringing me this information. It will be… dealt with, you have done enough for me, for this nation.”

Luke felt himself stand up straighter leaving the palace. The scar felt like a victory.

After all, it had helped him become the Fire Lord’s right hand man, all in a day.

  
  



End file.
